Field
Exemplary embodiments relate to a thin film transistor array panel and a method of manufacturing the thin film transistor array panel.
Discussion of the Background
The liquid crystal display (LCD), which is one of the most common types of flat panel displays currently in use, includes two sheets of array panels with field generating electrodes such as a pixel electrode, a common electrode, and the like. A liquid crystal layer is interposed between the two sheets of array panels. The liquid crystal display generates an electric field in the liquid crystal layer by applying a voltage to the field generating electrodes. The liquid crystal display determines the alignment of liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer through the generated electric field and controls the polarization of incident light, thereby displaying images.
Such a display device includes pixels, each being a unit for displaying an image, and drivers of different types. The drivers include a data driver applying a data voltage to the pixels and a gate driver applying a gate signal that controls transmission of the data voltage. Conventionally, the gate driver and the data driver are mounted as chips on a printed circuit board (PCB). Thus, the chip mounted gate driver and the data driver are directly mounted on the array panel. More recently, manufacturers have been developing gate drivers integrated on array panels (i.e., not formed as a separate chip) when the gate driver does not require high mobility of a channel of a thin film transistor. Manufacturer costs decrease as a result of integrating the gate driver as opposed to forming a separate gate driving chip because there are less manufacturing steps. An additional advantage is that the gate driver can be formed of a thin film transistor including an oxide semiconductor that uses a metal oxide having higher electron mobility than most materials.
The gate driver may include oxide semiconductor thin film transistors. A high voltage is applied between a source electrode and a drain electrode or between a gate electrode and a source electrode in a part of the oxide semiconductor thin film transistors. Accordingly, a high electric field that causes a hot carrier is formed, thereby causing the generation of charge trapping. In addition, the high electric field causes a current to leak through the thin film transistor.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the inventive concept, and, therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.